Free Falling
by ThreeShips
Summary: Six boys: two are a couple, two more are close to becoming one, and the last two are nowhere near being together. Will a very fiery night on the beach help move things along? And what else can these young souls get themselves in to?


_Annzy: Hey everyone! I'm Annzy -_

**Rioku: and I'm that one guy nobody knows about. w**

_-_- No one needs to know who you are for this... and you're a _girl_. _

**You know you wish I was a guy ;P**

_*facepalm* Anyways, this is a combined account for us because we like writing together~_

**It's _extremely_** **entertaining :3**

_Indeed! =D Anyways, I hope you enjoy this wonderfully fluffy story now~_

**By all means, enjoy any part of it that isn't fluffy as well~!**

* * *

Marik and Bakura walked down the block, hand in hand. Bakura chuckled, his white hair falling over his eyes before he turned to his blonde boyfriend with a smirk and asked, "So, we're all set up for the plan tonight?"

Marik smirks, shifting the heavy bag of "pyrotechnics" in his hand before answering innocently, "What plan, again?"

Bakura lets go of his hand and hits him in the shoulder. "You know what plan!" he said with a laugh, knowing he was just joking. "You're the one who thought of it, remember?"

"Oooh, _that_ plan!" the tanned boy replied, laughing. He turns to look at the setting sun before continuing; "I think tonight's going to be just perfect."

The paler boy kissed the other on the cheek, smiling when he noticed a light blush on his face. "Yes, perfect~."

"Aw, come on guys!" a louder, familiar voice announced from behind them. "We haven't even gotten to the beach yet and you're already acting all lovey-dovey!"

"The sunset affects me," Marik responded, "you know, in _that_ sort of… _special_ way~"

"Oh, do tell~" Bakura purred in his ear.

A familiar voice groans behind them. "Gross…"

"What took you so long anyways, onii-chan?" Marik asked wanting to get away from this topic quickly.

"Well, you told me to bring fireworks. I had to convince the cashier at Phantom that I _wasn't_ going to set any off before I got outside…"

Marik smirked. "The odds weren't exactly in your favor. Last time you went to the shop, you blew the place sky-high." Marik pauses, as if savoring the remarks he'd saved for this moment, "Poor Melvin, how did you resist leaving the new building intact?" Bakura nudged Marik gently on the shoulder, giggling.

Melvin gags as they laced their fingers together. "Get a frikkin' room."

Bakura rolled his eyes. "And you and _Ryou_ should get a room."

Melvin shook visibly, trying his hardest not to add Bakura to his hit list. "Now now, Bakura, indecent exposure is -"

"Melvin," a much gentler voice interrupted, "what are you talking about?"

"Ryou!" Melvin exclaimed, slightly panicked as he turned to the flighty British boy. "Um… Yeah, I was just telling Bakura here that he's too young to show Marik his -"

"MELVIN!" Marik interrupted, blushing like mad.

Bakura gave a very fake laugh, knowing that he would get Melvin back for that comment later. "Well, shall we get going then?"

"No, wait!" Ryou said, forgetting all about the "previous" conversation, "We have to wait for Yugi!"

Melvin rolled his eyes. "Yeah yeah, _Yugi_."

Marik and Bakura both snickered, earning a glare from Melvin. They both knew Melvin's "little secret" that happened to involve Ryou. And jealousy. Copious amounts of jelly… Peanut butter and jelly…

As if to insinuate more bickering, Yami and Yugi walked up together at this moment. Ryou immediately smiled, going up to Yugi and hugging him. Yugi's face lighted up with his usual smile while Melvin narrows his, pretending not to notice the two.

Bakura, noticing Melvin's elevating irritation, gives Marik a nudge. As if on cue, the purple boy claps his hands together and cheerfully announces that now's the time to go to the beach.

The awkward group heads down the road, a few cars full of screaming children passing. Bakura put his arms around Marik, whispering something in his ear to make the boy laugh. Melvin watches with envy, glancing at Ryou who was chatting quietly with Yugi. He notices Yami trailing slightly behind the group, looking a little sullen about the fact that Yugi is _completely_ ignoring him. Melvin thinks to himself for a minute before walking slower, falling into pace next to the silent boy.

"Hey," he mumbles, catching the spiny-haired boy's attention. "I know that I hate you and you hate me, but it seems we're both in the same situation…"

"I don't know what you're talking about," Yami denied, looking forward again, "There's no way I'm in the same position as _you_, considering you're repeating the twelfth grade."

It seems as if Melvin's eyes begin to catch fire as he grins crookedly, his right eye twitching ever so slightly. "That's not exactly what I was talking about, _lover boy_."

Yami immediately blushed, looking away from him. "Now I _really_ have no idea what you're talking about…" he mumbled before realizing something. "Wait, you said you're in the same position?"

Melvin nodded, pointing to Yugi and Ryou, who were giggling slightly together. The sight made him burn with jealousy. "_Those two_ need to be broken up."

Yami glanced at the two boys ahead of them, blushing again. "I've been thinking that for the past week. They've done nothing but chatter to each other like a couple of girls…"

Melvin's eyes softened before he said, "But he always smiles so happily when he rambles like that~"

Yami chuckled, raising his hands in surrender. "All right, that may be so, but they should spend time with someone else. That's where you were going, right?"

"Definitely!" Melvin said, grinning. "So, I'll take the cute one, and you can have the _other_ one."

"I thought _I _was taking Yugi?" Yami said, raising an eyebrow.

"No offense, but Ryou is _way_ cuter than _that_ weird kid."

"Oh contraire, mon frere!" Yami disagreed, frowning, "Yugi is just such a child; everything he does is _adorable._"

"Okay, that may be true," Melvin said, "_but_, when Ryou smiles it's like a million suns have just landed on his face!"

"Guys," Yugi said, interrupting their argument and making them snap their heads over to the two cuties. "What are you two bickering about?"

Yami blushed slightly and turned away. "Nothing…" he mumbled, immediately making Yugi curious.

"Is Melvin talking about fire again?" Ryou said, frowning slightly.

"Why of _course_ not," Melvin mutters, a little annoyed that Ryou always assumed - just because he accidentally _almost_ set his house on fire - that he was a pyromaniac. "We were just discussing how _close _you two were getting; we wanted to know when you'd be confessing you LOVE for each other." He giggled childishly, as if this was a taboo affair.

"N-no!" Yugi stammered, rubbing the back of his neck as his eyes remained glued to the pavement. "We're just friends," he mumbles inaudibly.

"Oh no, it's nothing like that!" Ryou assured as well, holding his hands up. "We just, have a lot in common."

That comment _really _sent Melvin over the edge. He was about to unload on all three of them when Marik whips around to see what's going on. His eyes widen immediately and he says, "Hey, guys, we're almost there! Hurry up!"

"Coming!" Ryou said, smiling. He ran over to Bakura and grabs his free hand, swinging their arms like they did when they were younger.

Melvin glanced down at Yami with a smug look on his face, gloating his cute war victory. Yami pouted before tapping Yugi on the shoulder and holding his hand out with a gentle smile. Yugi blushed before taking it sheepishly, looking at the approaching sand dunes to avoid looking in the boy's eyes. Yami stuck his tongue out at Melvin who just rolled his eyes, a little peeved that he couldn't do that with Ryou.

* * *

As the dirt beside the road became sand, Marik smiled. He was sure that his plan would work perfectly; already Yami and Yugi were hand in hand. But then he noticed Ryou. Instead of being forced next to Melvin by the other "couples," he was clinging to his twin brother's hand. Marik rolled his eyes; _Lovely… What to do, what to do…_

"Ryou," his boyfriend's voice interrupts his thoughts. "Aren't we a little old to be holding hands?"

_Thank you, Bakura! We make such a good team~_

"Eh?" Ryou asked, looking at him and frowning a bit. "We're only Juniors… Gosh, 'Kura!"

"We're going to be seniors at the start of school," he reminded him. He let go of his brother's hand and crossed his arms, looking away from the fellow pale boy.

"I think we should hold hands with other people."

"But you've already got Marik," Ryou whined, frowning more when he noticed Bakura winking at the Egyptian. "And Yugi's holding Yami's hand…"

Ryou was a little startled when Marik started laughing. "Think, Ryou, who's the only other person in this group that you haven't given a second glance?"

Ryou pursed his lips in concentration, trying to think of who Marik might be referring to. His eyes widen as he looks behind him, seeing Marik's older brother mumbling to himself while playing with a lighter. He turned back to the only distinguished couple (as of this moment) and exclaimed unbelievingly, "_Melvin?-!_"

"Ding ding!" Marik started before Bakura finished with, "We _have_ a winner!"

"… But… he's playing with fire… I'm scared…"

"Ryou, you've lived with _me_," Baku said, "how can you be scared of anything?"

"I'm used to _your_ crazy," Ryou explained, "Not… _that_ crazy." He pointed behind him to insinuate what kind of crazy he was referring to.

"Just give it a shot," Marik pushes. "My brother's such an annoying, lonely little creep; maybe all he needs is someone who's not so scared of him."

"Well that's not really going to work, because I _am_ scared of him!"

"Just -"

"Ryou!" Yugi called, running up to him and grabbing his hand. "Look at the sand dunes!"

Ryou smiled and started running, pulling the boy along with him. "Let's go make sand angels!"

As those two cute boys run off, Yami falls back into step next to Melvin. "Well, that was nice while it lasted."

"Watching them like that…" Melvin said, grinding his teeth. "It's sickening…"

Yami smirked. "You just want to be Yugi…"

"SHUT UP," Melvin turned on him. "You probably want to be Ryou, too!"

Just as Yami opens his mouth to argue some more, Bakura turns around and yells at the two, "Oy! Either keep arguing, or set off some fireworks with _us_," he gestured to the two boys laying on the sand with a smirk, showing who they'd _rather_ be by.

Melvin's irritated expression cracks into a grin as he lifts up the bag of fireworks he brought with him. "I've got the motherload!"

Marik paled slightly before turning to the beach. "Well… that's just lovely…"

Bakura looked at him oddly. "Marik, you okay?"

"Yeah!" he insisted before fast walking up to Ryou and picking him up by the hand. "You're going to get all sandy, you know."

Ryou grinned. "But that's part of the fun!"

Marik shook his head, giving up and letting the two childish boys continue with their rofling in the sand. He looked around; Melvin was busily setting up his truckload of fireworks up on one of the concrete slabs that were set up on the beach for no apparent reason. Marik's eyes widened at the sight of all the explosives; he ran back to Bakura to bury his face in his shoulder.

"What's wrong?" the British beauty asked worriedly as he slipped his arm around the Egyptian's shoulders.

Marik laughed a little nervously. "Well, um… you know how I just brought these little poppers, and little stuff like that to blow off?"

"… Yeah…?"

"That's because, uh…" Marik hesitated before looking up at him, a light blush decorating his cheeks. "I'm afraid of big fireworks…"

Bakura just stared at him for a second before chuckling and pecking him on the lips. "That is _so_ cute."

Marik blushed more and crossed his arms. "Shut up… if Melvin finds out I'll never hear the end of it."

"Don't worry, I'll keep you busy," Bakura said, chuckling as Marik started hitting him. "Oh come on, it's not like it won't be anything you won't enjoy."

"Shut up!-!" Marik hissed, crossing his arms and turning his back to him.

Bakura rolled his eyes before hugging him from behind. "It's okay, I'll protect you from the scary fireworks."

"Don't patronize me, Bakura…"

Bakura chuckled before turning him around to face him. "Every time a big firework goes off, I'll do this," he said quietly before kissing him.

Marik grinned when they separated. "_Every_ time…?" he asked, playing with a strand of Bakura's fluffy white locks. "Maybe Melvin should have brought more, then."

Bakura giggled right as Melvin interrupted them, saying, "Oy, either keep making out or come join us!"

"We're just going to sit on this sand dune for a bit," Bakura said, pointing to the one nearest them.

"Yeah, you four have fun without us~" Marik agreed, grinning.

Melvin rolled his eyes. "You two are _soooo_ horny," he mumbled.

Ryou overheard and immediately chastised him, "Hey! They've never done that sort of thing!"

Melvin chuckled. "Sure, sure…"

"Yugi," Yami asked, "what kind of fireworks did you bring?"

Yugi smiled and winked at him. "You'll have to wait and see!"

Yami chuckled and said before he could think properly, "They're probably cute like you…" as soon as he realized what he said his entire face went red. "U-uh… I, I meant…"

He stopped flustering when Yugi started giggling. "And I'm sure your fireworks are strong, like you." He grabbed the other boy's arm and started cuddling it, resting his head on his shoulder.

"… Th-they're not _that_ strong…" he mumbled, leaning his head on top of the other boy's.

Melvin was absorbed in his fireworks, but he turned around when he heard mumbling. When he saw the position the two boys were in, his heart felt heavy. Seeing Yami and Yugi together made him realize that he really _was_ the last horse to cross the finish line, between them and the couple probably making out by the sand dunes. He turned to look at Ryou, who was just standing on the sand and looking at the water with his hands behind his back. The wind blew gently, making his hair and clothes flow playfully.

How would someone sweet like that ever fall for a guy like _him?_ Melvin could tell that Ryou was a little afraid of him, usually it was only when he started thinking about fire… but he couldn't _help_ it! Fire was just so beautiful, just like he was…

He took a deep breath before walking over to the unsuspecting boy. "Hey, Ryou," he greeted casually, smiling.

Ryou turned to him, a little surprised, but he smiled back nonetheless. "Hello, is there something I can help you with?"

Melvin's eye started twitching. _He's so fucking polite with me…_ he thought angrily as he put a hand up to his chin in mock thought. "Well… wanna help me set up the fireworks?"

"I'd love to see what you've got with you!" Ryou exclaimed happily. "Bakura never brings any big fireworks, he thinks they're too dangerous. But I _love _them! The bigger the better!"

Melvin blushed, turning his head to the side and coughing awkwardly. "Well then, you'd love what I've brought…"

"Great! Let's go!" Ryou said, smiling. He took a step, and then remembering what Marik said back on the road grabbed the taller boy's hand.

Melvin felt like someone had set his face on fire. "R-Ryou…?"

Ryou blinked at him before smiling. "I think it's time I hold hands with other people!"

Melvin tried to speak but no words would come out. He turned his head to the side, noticing that Yami and Yugi were holding hands and sitting on the beach, staring up at the moon… He growled, gripping Ryou's hand tighter and pulling him to the fireworks he had brought. "All right, let's go…"

Ryou's eyes widened, noticing a very _angry_ look in Melvin's eyes and immediately becoming frightened. Angry combined with fireworks…? _Not a good combination!_ "Um, actually, I've changed my mind," Ryou said, trying to take his hands out of the other's.

Melvin realized what he did and tried to calm Ryou down. "I'm just going to shoot off some fireworks," he managed to say calmly. "Come on, it'll be fun!"

Ryou bit his lower lip, looking away. "I don't really trust you all that much…"

Hearing those soft-spoken words come out of Ryou's mouth made Melvin feel empty inside. So that was it - he had no trust in him… at all. What, did he think he'd _hurt_ him? He'd never do that! He didn't even think he could… "Ryou," he said, his voice void of all emotion, "it'll be fine. I would _never_ hurt you."

Ryou took a deep breath before mumbling, "That's what _he_ said, too…"

Melvin's eyes widened. "Who?" he demanded.

Ryou jumped, trying to gather a good excuse not to mention Yugi, especially since it seemed Melvin already didn't like him. However, nature did that for him; before he could even open his mouth, water started washing over his shoes. "Ah… Melvin?" Ryou said as he took his hand and attempted to pull him away, "The tides are coming in…" Melvin's eyes widened as he looked down at his bag of precious pyrotechnics.

"WHAT?" He squealed like a child, snatching the bag away from the waves, "Let's get away from the water, shall we?" He grabbed Ryou's hand and climbed onto a decently sized slab of concrete. Just as he sets his precious babies down, Marik and Bakura come back from the dip in the sand where they'd been doing… certain things, completely drenched.

Melvin smirked. "How's that water, you two? Cold enough?" When he turned his back, Marik charged him. Before he could do anything he was face-down in the sand with a pointy elbow pressing on his back and water dripping all ove rhim.

"No, it's not cold at all you asshole!" Marik yelled sarcastically. "Why don't you _warn_ us next time?"

"Well you would've realized the tide was coming in if you weren't so busy losing your - _OW!_" the older Ishtar brother stopped talking when the younger brother gripped his arm and twisted it behind his back.

"For the last fucking time, we -!" He let out a silent scream as Bakura grabbed him by the shoulders and pulled him off him. "What are you doing?"

"Don't kill your brother; if anything, I expected Melvin to be arrested for murder by fire."

"Shut _up!_" Melvin yelled, standing up and glaring at him. Ryou was already afraid of him, these comments weren't helping anything!

"Melvin," Ryou's timid voice said, accompanied by a hand that gripped his upper arm. "Calm down, it's okay."

Melvin took a deep breath and plastered a smile on his face. "You're right Ryou, we came here to set off fireworks, so let's do it!"

Ryou smiled before looking around. "Where's Yugi?"

"We're over here!" Yugi called. Everyone turned to look at him; he was still sitting on the sand holding Yami's hand, only now he was turned and waving to them with a happy, eyes-closed smile.

"Come over!" Ryou called. "We're going to set off some major fireworks!"

Marik sighed, leaning on Bakura more, who just put his arms around him and whispering that everything would be fine.

* * *

Marik cowered into Bakura's arms as Melvin emptied his bag of happiness; all sorts of increasingly large fireworks displays rolled out of the bag, breaking the laws of physics by the time the last one came out. "How many fireworks fit _in_ that bag?-!" Marik asked, panicked and dumbfounded. "Is that Mary Friggin' Poppins' bag or something?"

"No, it's just _my_ bag!" Melvin said, grinning ear to ear. "It's also fireproof!"

"Impressive," Ryou said, leaning in to look at the explosive spread. "Which one should we light off first?"

Melvin pointed to the biggest firework, entitled "The Box of Fire!" When Marik saw this he squealed and buried his face into Bakura's shoulder, immediately earning a cuddling.

In contrast, Ryou's eyes lit up as he stared at the black box. "Oh my… it looks so beautiful! And it hasn't even been lit yet!"

Melvin smiled, happy to see that Ryou did show at least a _little_ interest in the wonders of fire. "I'm ever so glad to hear you say that, Ryou!"

"Shouldn't we save the biggest firework for last?" Yami asked, glancing at all of the other ones. "Let's light some little ones first and work our way up."

"I second that," Yugi agreed, making Yami smile. "How about some of those little poppers?" He grabs a box and rips it open before Melvin takes it out of his hand.

"Nope! Me and Ryou both say that we should light this one first!"

"Well, they do have a point about the finale," Ryou said, thinking to himself. He turned to Marik and Bakura, "What do you guys think?"

Marik glanced up at them. "How about we don't light off any of them? Yeah… I like that plan…"

Bakura patted Marik's shoulder sympathetically, shaking his head. "You four should fight this one out yourselves." He wrapped his arms around him and they both sat down in the sand.

"How about this, then," Ryou began, "Melvin and I could set off this beauty while you and Yami go over to the dunes and throw some poppers into the water?

That would work. We'll just use the _second_biggest rocket for the finale."

* * *

Yami threw a popper into the water, rolling his eyes as the popping sound that was supposed to accompany it never came. "Yeah, _this_ is working," he mumbled.

"Hey, we brought our own fireworks, remember?" Yugi reminded him, taking out his own small bag of pyrotechnics. "And I just happen to have a Zippo!"

Yami chuckled. "_You_ have a Zippo?"

Yugi stuck his tongue out at him. "I'm not as weak as everyone takes me for!" He took the fancy lighter out of his bag and threw it at the other boy. "See it and believe it."

Yami laughed. "I didn't think you were weak, I've never thought that. I just didn't take you as someone to own a lighter."

They both turned their heads as they heard what sounded like a sonic _boom_ come up behind them. Their jaws dropped as they stared up at the sky; it was lit up with tons of multi-colored lights. Some sparks started as one color and multiplied into a different color while others formed shapes such as flowers, lines, and clouds while others flew up and around in the air. All of these were coming from "The Box of Fire!" and they made sure to cover every single inch of the sky from their sight. The Box actually looked like it was catching fire as well, and it seemed the show was not going to end anytime soon even though the box was fairly small for this type of excessive fire show.

One boy was trembling from the sight, however, and his boyfriend was right there to comfort him. "It'll be fine, Marik," he whispered into the tan boy's ear as he hugged him close.

"There's so many explosions…" he mumbled, gripping Bakura's shirt tightly and grinding his teeth.

Bakura smiled encouragingly before gripping his shoulders and looking into his closed eyes. "Marik, I'm right here. No way am I letting anything hurt you, okay?"

Marik simply shook his head, not being able to form the words to say he wouldn't be able to protect him if they _both_ caught on fire…

"Hey, we can do anything, remember?" Bakura asked, chuckling. "Who got our first bloody principal fired for being a homophobic wanker?"

Marik smiled slightly. "We -" he buried his face into Bakura's shoulder again when another _loud_ explosion sounded. He calmed down only slightly when he felt a pair of arms envelope him, holding him tightly.

"Well, talking doesn't seem to be working," Bakura commented to himself before sighing. He started stroking Marik's hair, since he knew that helped him calm down. "Would you like a kiss?" Bakura asked with a smile. "Or would your prefer for me to sing?"

"… Right now," Marik began, speaking into Bakura's shirt, "could you please sing…?"

Bakura chuckled before starting to sing "Safe and Sound" by Taylor Swift softly in Marik's ears. The purple boy calmed down considerably as he concentrated on Bakura's words rather than the explosions all around him.

While these two were cuddling in the sand, their look-alikes for brothers were having a very different reaction to the display.

"This is glorious!" Ryou exclaimed, mouth and arms wide open as he stared upwards.

Melvin chuckled and crossed his arms smugly. "See? Fire is beautiful!"

"Only when it's colored," Ryou clarified, "and in spark form."

Melvin shook his head, amused. "Some how, some way, I will make you see the beauty of an uncontrolled - I mean, _controlled _fire," he covered when he noticed the look Ryou gave him. Dang, he really needed to watch his mouth…

Ryou cringed a little before looking back up at the sky and smiling again. He'll admit, fire looked pretty sometimes. Just not when it was being used for destruction, which is what the other boy normally used it for. He's stared at many a campfire and smiled as the colors swirled into a delightful program of lights. The only problem he had with Melvin and fire was that he took it to an extreme level, making him scared that he'd be covered in the previously pretty flames.

"Hey, Ryou," Melvin said, placing a hand on the boy's shoulder and making him turn to look at him. Melvin didn't say anything for a moment as he just stared into Ryou's round, chocolate eyes that reflected the colored sky above and made them ten times more beautiful. "You know, I don't think that fire is the _only_ thing that's beautiful…"

Ryou turned his head to the side curiously, glancing up occasionally to not miss the fireworks above. "Oh? So what else do you consider beautiful?"

Melvin opened his mouth to say something charming and witty that insinuated it was _him_, but found that nothing would come out. "Uh… it's… you know…" he coughed and pointed up at the fireworks. "I'll tell you later, after this…"

Ryou gave him an odd look before smiling back up at the fireworks. However, they soon ended with one final flower-shaped explosion raining down and covering over them all. It was silent as their eyes adjusted to the dark sky once more. "Well, I guess they -"

"That was so cool!" Yugi announced, running up to Ryou and bouncing up and down. "Did you _see_ them all?-!"

"It was very remarkable," Yami agreed as he walked up to them and nodded once, grinning at Melvin who just glared at him.

"I know!" Ryou said excitedly back to Yugi, "I couldn't believe so many fireworks could fit in such a small container!"

"I thought for sure it would have ended sooner than _that!_"

"Completely unbelievable!"

"Hey, guys," Melvin interrupted, "we still have some more fireworks you know… and where's my brother and his boy-toy anyways?"

"We're over here," a pronounced British accent ran over to them from a few feet away, "and I'm not his "boy-toy." I'm his "boy_friend_." Huge difference."

"_Huge_ difference," Marik agreed, laughing a bit. Bakura rolled his eyes, glad that Marik was much better now.

"Whatever, you two," Melvin said, shaking his head.

"So Melvin, what else do you consider beautiful?" Ryou asked innocently, tilting his head to the side slightly. He really was curious; he didn't know much about this older boy except what he's seen him do and heard through the grapevine, and most of it was that he was a psychotic pyromaniac who became annoyed very easily. The thought of him thinking other things were beautiful besides fire was very interesting for Ryou to discover.

The older Ishtar brother stared at Ryou before smiling; he was going to _force_ himself to have confidence if he had to! Besides, it shouldn't be too hard to say what's on his mind, he'd been doing it all his life! "I consider you _very_ beautiful, Ryou."

Ryou blinked at him before a light blush swept over his features. He looked down and played with a strand of his hair. "Oh… um, thank you…"

Melvin smiled, not noticing Yugi and Yami trying not to laugh. "Well, guys," Yugi said, "shall we light up the sky again?"

"Definitely!" Melvin said, right before he heard a loud scream. He turned to see Ryou staring at "The Box of Fire!" that was now, true to it's name, _on_ fire!

"Put it out, put it out!" Ryou exclaimed.

"I think we should keep it…" Melvin said airily, staring at the flames and allowing them to take over his entire vision. His eyes filled with the sight of the dancing flames that licked at the sand, his ears filled with the melodious crackling sounds… Until they were bombarded with:

"Oh dear God, please don't let it burn anything down!-!"

"Ryou, relax," Melvin said calmly, switching off between looking at the pretty British boy and the enchanting flames. "It's not going to burn anything, it's in sand -"

"There are trees around here, you know!"

"Yes, but the wind's too calm to blow it far; that fire's not going anywhere, okay?" he placed both of his hands on Ryou's shoulders and smiled encouragingly. "I _know_ fire, okay?"

Ryou stared up at him before smiling slightly. "I guess you do…" It seemed that maybe Melvin _wasn't_ as fire-crazy as he had thought… before he had taken Melvin as, well, a wild flame, to put it metaphorically, but now he realized that he _could_ control himself as well as the fire that he loved to play with so much.

"_Where_ did you find that, again?" Bakura asked, one hand linked with Marik's. "Surely that Phantom owner wouldn't give _you_ such a dangerous thing!"

"For your information, 'Kura McDoubty-pants," Melvin said, glaring at him, "I _did_ acquire this at Phantom. For half off, too!"

Bakura scoffed. "You probably threatened him. Wouldn't you need an ID for this?"

"I have my ways," Melvin said secretively before looking at all of the other lovely fireworks that he brought with him. "So, what should we light off next?"

Marik scoops up a handful of poppers; "I think these would be the best!" He says, casting a sarcastic smile in Bakura's direction.

"The light rain after the storm," Ryou commented, taking the poppers from him. "I like it!" He threw one at the cement slabs, smiling when a satisfying "pop!" sound came from it. As soon as he did this, Melvin decided that he'd make this more interesting. He grabbed a handful of popper and made a little pile of them on the concrete. He then proceeded to light a match and toss it onto the pile. Little pieces of paper debris flew everywhere as the poppers went off; the cracks escalated into a crescendo of booms that left an echo in the silence that followed. Marik was clinging to Bakura's arm as if it were the only thing tying him to life. Ryou and Yugi were standing side by side, their eyes wide. Yami just shook his head.

The other's reactions, Ryou's especially, made him realize that he was an idiot. "Whoops?" he said, "Maybe I should have dropped them all instead of lighting them…" He gave a nervous laugh before raising his hands in defeat and going to sit on the sand.

The group slowly calmed down, lighting off a few small fireworks while Marik cowered behind Bakura's white mane. Yugi and Yami handled most of the fireworks on their own, while Melvin forced himself to sit and watch. His sullen expression changed, however, when Ryou came to sit by him.

"Amazing…" he murmured, looking up at the rainbow of explosions above them. Melvin glanced casually down at him. The pale boy's eyes reflected the colors in the sky, becoming more beautiful then they'd ever been before. He blushed. Ryou was already beautiful to him, but now, with the blooming fireworks mirrored in his eyes, he seemed so innocent, so… _Perfect?_ He shook his head. He didn't come to watch Ryou, he came to watch explosions in the sky. Just as he turned back to the sky, a bright flower burst into life. He smiled; even beautiful things could be dangerous.

Ryou rests his head on Melvin's shoulder. His face reddened as he looked down at the sweet boy, the color increasing as he sees him yawn and cover his mouth in possibly the cutest way possible. "Oh, I'm sorry…" he mumbled, his hand still over his mouth. "I'm just really tired."

"… It's fine," Melvin mumbled, managing to smoothly move his arm over Ryou's shoulder. He could feel his heart-rate increasing as Ryou snuggled into him better, breathing easy as if he really _was_ going to go to sleep.

Ryou chuckled a bit. "It's kind of weird how natural this feels," he said.

"What do you mean?" Melvin asked, wondering if maybe Ryou was insinuating it was natural because… he liked him too?

"Well, I mean…" Ryou began, his eyelids dropping halfway over those melt-away chocolate eyes, "I don't know. I guess I'm just saying that I've been in this position a lot."

"… What?-!" Melvin asked with wide eyes. A loud firework went off just then as if to enunciate how surprised he was to hear that.

"Ah! That sounded bad, didn't it?" Ryou asked, laughing at himself. He straightened himself out a little and smiled weakly at Melvin. "I just meant, um, I used to sleep on Bakura's shoulder, when we were younger, and it just feels comfortable… and I've slept on some other people's shoulders, and some of them aren't comfy at all." He let his head fall on Melvin's shoulder again before finishing with, "But your arm is really comfy; it feels so natural."

Melvin couldn't think for a second; it's like his brain was stuck on what Ryou had just said. _He feels natural like this?_ he thought to himself, smiling slightly. "Hey, Ryou?" he said gently, resisting the urge to chuckle as he saw his eyes flutter open sleepily. "There's something I've been meaning to tell you…"

"Hmm…" Ryou whined slightly, sitting up all the way and rubbing his eyes. "What is it?"

"I think it'll be best expressed in this specially-made firework I brought," Melvin said, grinning.

Ryou gave him an amused smile before nodding slightly to say, "Okay." Melvin grinned and actually squealed a little, making Ryou laugh like crazy. Seeing someone big and scary like _Melvin_ squealing was really funny! And oddly cute…

He watched him walk over to his prized bag of fireworks, glowering over at Yami and Yugi for a second before joining Ryou again. He held an oddly-shaped firework; it had one base that led off into two separate directions with rainbow coloring. "What's that called?" Ryou asked curiously right before a series of crackles and pops emanated from Yami and Yugi's fireworks.

Melvin just smiled. "You'll see! Wanna do the honors of lighting it?"

"Um," Ryou said, a little startled. "I'm not really good with lighters, I prefer matches -"

"You don't know how to start a lighter?" Melvin asked, amazed. He didn't think that was possible!

"No," Ryou admitted sheepishly, "I've tried before, but I could never get the hang of it."

Melvin grinned before shoving the lighter into the white-haired boy's face. "Allow me to teach you, then!" He smiled as Ryou took the device hesitantly, as if afraid it would light just by him touching it. "You hold it with your fingers and put your thumb there by the metal wheel," he instructed, moving Ryou's fingers where they needed to go. He couldn't help but feel a little excited that their hands were touching, and what he didn't know was that Ryou felt a little out of breath from the contact. He told himself it was because he was holding a dangerous lighter though.

"So you just spin the wheel and then hold the button down," Melvin said, letting go so that Ryou could do it on his own.

The boy tried doing as he was told, but when a surprisingly large spark came out of the hole near his thumb he let out a quiet "yelp!" and dropped it. Melvin laughed while Ryou pouted; "I wasn't expecting it to be so bright!"

"I'm sure, I'm sure," Melvin said, chuckling.

"Oh, just… give me that!-!" Ryou said heatedly before taking the lighter and trying again. This time he expected the spark, so it didn't startle him. Now he was determined! But after trying three more times and getting nothing but sparks he proclaimed, "This is impossible!"

Melvin chuckled before taking the lighter from him and making a small flame come out. He smiled smugly at Ryou, who just crossed his arms and mumbled, "Show off…"

"Just keep trying, you'll get it eventually," Melvin assured, smiling at him. Ryou looked so cute when he was frustrated~.

"Easy for you to say, you could probably light a lighter when you were three!"

"… Well, that's true…" Melvin said, frowning a bit.

Ryou noticed his change in mood and looked at him. "Something wrong?"

Melvin sighed and rubbed the back of his head, looking out at the water. "I just wish you wouldn't always associate fire and destruction with me…" he said sadly, muttering under his breath, "I don't want you to be afraid of me…"

Ryou stared at him for a bit before biting his bottom lip. "I'm sorry, it's just… in school, that's all I hear. They always refer to you as, "that fire-loving dude" and you _do_ love fire…" He put a hand on the blonde's shoulder as he saw him sulk a little. "I'm sorry… maybe if I knew more about you I wouldn't think that way."

Melvin looked at him curiously. "Do you _want_ to know more about me?" he asked hopefully.

Ryou nodded with a smile. "Sure! Behind everyone is a story, so I'd love to hear yours."

Melvin smiled happily. "Well then, light off this firework and you'll find out something more about me!"

Ryou groaned before trying to work the lighter again. "I don't think I'll ever - I got it!" he exclaimed, looking at the small flame that was flickering near his thumb. Surprisingly, it wasn't that hot though!

"Quick, light the firework!" Melvin said, handing him the multi-colored dual rocket. Ryou lit the wick that dangled between the two, feeling a rush of excitement as he did so, and as soon as the wick started disappearing Melvin buried the base in the sand and grabbed Ryou's hand, running away from the explosive. They turned around when they heard it whistle, and when it popped all sorts of different colored sparks came from it, effectively spelling the words "I'M GAY" in the sky.

Ryou stared up at the words, slack-jawed, not believing his eyes. He covered his mouth as his entire face went red, and there was _no way_ he was looking at Melvin anytime soon.

"Well, that's my secret!" Melvin said, his hands behind his back. He turned to Ryou, surprised to see the state he was in. "Hey, are you all right?"

"I-I'm just f-fine…!" Ryou stumbled, taking a step away and almost tripping into the sand. Melvin was…? Really? Well, he supposed it was obvious when he thought about it, but… the thought had never really occurred to Ryou before! He had actually thought Melvin was asexual… the idea of him being, _gay_… did he like someone, then? For some reason Ryou couldn't imagine Melvin as liking anyone; he didn't seem the type for that!

"You're obviously lying," Melvin insisted, rolling his eyes. "I'm not an idiot, even if I am repeating a grade."

"I kn-know that, I just… didn't think…" Ryou covered his eyes, cursing himself. This always happened when he found out someone was gay; he knew he preferred men over women, but he also didn't like anyone unless he knew there was a possible future with them. He had never like a straight boy in his life, but the downside to this "gift" was that every time he found out someone _did_ swing "his way" he immediately imagined what it would be like with them. Or, more precisely, what it would be like kissing them or… _No!_

The flustered boy screamed a little when he felt a hand on his shoulder. "I didn't think that would freak you out so much," Melvin said, frowning, "considering your brother…"

"N-no, it's not that...!" Ryou tried explaining, becoming much more sensitive to his shoulder all of a sudden. "I'm perfectly fine with you being g-gay, but I just... I didn't expect... it's just a surprise, that's all!"

Melvin looked down sympathetically at the pale angel. "I suppose that might've been... a bit much." He laughed, the first time in a long time that he'd _actually_ laughed... Without there being an uncontrollable mass of flames in front of him, anyways.

Ryou nodded in agreement. "Yes..." Feeling a little more self-conscious about what he'd just done, Melvin got up, and headed towards the bag of fireworks to grab a couple of the sparklers Bakura had so _graciously_ brought.

"That was a very _interesting_ firework you just shot off, Melvin," the British man in question said with a laugh. He knew about Ryou's little "problem," and he knew that this would either help speed things along between them or ruin it completely. But the odds of the second option were very slim. Plus, it would be amusing because Melvin didn't realize what mental torture he's about to put Ryou through!

"Yeah, yeah..." Melvin brushed off the comment, "It's not as if nobody knew already. It was only a matter of time before I went insane from awkward-in-the-closet-ness..." Before Bakura could say anything about his current mental state, he grabbed a fistful of roman candles and strode off to sit next to Ryou. He snagged the lighter out of the sand, where Ryou had so nicely dropped it in his surprise, and started to light one of the fireworks.

Ryou noticed this immediately. "Shouldn't you set that down _before_ you light it?" He asked, afraid that Melvin was about to take a few shots at his brother.

"Nah." Melvin murmured as the first little ball of color erupted from the tube, "It's more fun this way." He grinned as a few more flares dashed up and over the dark water. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see Ryou watching him with concern... _Is that concern? Or maybe.. Nah. Not now, just after I came out in such an insane way..._ He looked down at him with a smirk. "You wanna try holding one?"

Ryou's eyes widened; you'd think he'd asked him to hold a ticking pipe bomb. "_Me?_" he asked incredulously. "No, no way!" He shook his head furiously, closing his eyes as if to even block the thought from entering his mind. Him holding a _cardboard_ stick that was shooting fire out of it...? It seemed much more of Melvin's thing than his, and even _then _he was worried. Sure, Melvin had demonstrated that he could control himself a little earlier, but it would be so simple to pivot a little and hit someone with those sparks, especially if he was mad at them... Or even just a little annoyed.

"I'm sure you'll be fine," Melvin mumbled in a comforting sort of way. "Here..." He gently placed a fresh one in Ryou's hand. It was coated in a bright silvery paint that seemed to reflect everything, even in the dark. He smiled as he examined the silhouettes of everything in the warped mirror; but of course, he didn't get to enjoy the simple beauty for long. In a matter of seconds, the beautiful silhouettes were scared away by the sparkling light that was coming from... _Oh God..._ The end of the firework.

Ryou closed his eyes tight, expecting to feel his hands being blown off, but the pain of burned flesh never came. Instead, he felt a pair of warm, gentle hands enclosing his own. He slowly opened his eyes; Melvin had come to his cowardly rescue. He glanced up and saw a beautiful explosion of blue burst from the end of the cardboard. _I guess Melvin was right..._ he thought, watching the rainbow of fire flying from his hands. _Fire can be beautiful._ He looked up at the oldest Ishtar brother; his dark purple eyes were highlighted in a beautiful contrast whenever a new color exploded into existence. He couldn't help but stare at them, preferring to watch the sparks through such beautiful eyes than seeing them directly. Then Melvin ruined the sight by glancing down at Ryou, sending a new shiver down his spine.

"See?" he giggled, "Not scary at all!" Ryou laughed nervously along with him. It was a strange feeling that had started to take a grip on him; it felt so strong. He was sure that, even if he tried with all his might, this feeling wouldn't lose its hold on him.

It was then that he noticed the warmth of his hands. That's what had erased his fear, that's all it had taken; one little touch from Melvin and he could hold the burning stick of death without a care in the world. _Touch... It's such a silly thing, but it seems to cause a sensation throughout the entire body... _Ryou blushed. _Or at least...When I feel _his _touch.._. He shook his head, cursing himself again. He wouldn't even be thinking like this if he hadn't seen that stupid firework!-!

"Ryou, are you alright?" Melvin's beautiful eyes seemed to overflow with concern, "You're... Well, you've gone completely red!"

"W-what? I'm fine..." he muttered as his ears seemed to catch fire. The last thing he needed was to fall in love with every little thing this psycho did.

Melvin smirked. "You don't.. _like _me, do you?" He laughed and Ryou nearly fainted. _What the bloody hell is wrong with me? Don't I have other options than this... freak? Why did my heart choose _this _guy?_

Melvin continued laughing for a bit before he looked down at Ryou and realized he wasn't saying anything. His eyes widened as he realized Ryou looked a little sick, which in turn made him feel a little depressed. Did the very _thought_ of liking him make this sweet boy sick? And it seemed like things had been going so well…

"Ryou, it was just a joke…" he managed to say monotonously, holding back his true emotions. Well, he supposed he was good at that, anyways…

Ryou clamped his mouth shut, staring up into his unemotional face. When Melvin got like this, it was just as terrifying as his psychotic smile around fire; who knew what lay behind that expressionless mask? "R-right, sorry, my brain's a little, uh, scrambled at the moment…" he shuffled the hands that were still enclosed in his own, as if to alert him even slightly that it was thanks to _him_ that he was like this.

Two and two came together in Melvin's mind, and he let go, rubbing the back of his neck. "Erm... sorry." _Brilliant…_ _I think I just scared the holy living shit out of him…_ He decided to drown out the awkward by setting off the rest of the roman candles all at once.

"Melvin!" Ryou exclaimed once he saw what he was doing. "Don't!-!"

"Too late!" Melvin exclaimed, holding ten roman candles in each hand and pointing them up and towards the ocean. He laughed maniacally as they started going off, staring at all of the beautiful flames before they disappeared on the water.

Ryou was frozen to the sand as he watched the sight. This was _not_ a good idea! Melvin could get seriously hurt…! "Melvin, stop! You might get hurt!" He forced his body to move forward, but he wasn't sure what to do as he came next to the boy who was still smiling psychotically at the roman candles. Each "pop" sent a new pit in Ryou's stomach, but as he looked up at the colored sparks dancing around each other and landing harmlessly in the water, he felt like there wasn't much danger after all… He took a deep breath to calm himself and almost squeaked when Melvin's voice said, "See? It's fine."

Ryou looked up at the fire-crazy boy and felt an entirely new sensation envelop him: _anger_. How could he do something so incredibly stupid? Had he _completely_ lost his mind? _How could he _do _that to me?_

"What were you thinking?-!" Ryou hollered, "You could've killed someone!" _Or yourself..._

Melvin was taken aback. "It's just a few little explosions... It couldn't hurt anyone."

"'Couldn't hurt anyone?-!' Are you out of your mind? That was so dangerous!" Ryou was furious now. _How could he be so... so... STUPID?_

"I, I knew it'd be okay!" Melvin defended, creasing his eyebrows. He didn't understand what the big deal was! He made sure they were all facing the right way, and all they did was shoot harmless sparks out! They couldn't do anything.

"Anything can happen, Melvin!" Ryou yelled at him, starting to pull his hair out. "The cardboard could have exploded! The sparks could've gotten caught and set the entire thing on fire! The... the... sparks could've combined into a... giant, ball of fire that could seriously hurt you!" It was obvious he was struggling to think of more dangerous things to say to prove his point. "You could've... you could've..."

At that, Ryou burst into tears. His anger and worry had burnt out, leaving him with a gut-wrenching sadness. When he felt a pair of warm arms around him he just clung to the shirt they came with and cried into them, not caring that he was getting Melvin's shirt wet or what thoughts must be going through his head right now.

"Ryou, it's all right," the older boy said soothingly. The British boy knew it was probably just the kind of situation he was in, but it was as if Melvin was speaking with water instead of fire like he normally did. "Everything's okay now, don't cry."

Ryou sniffled before letting go of him and rubbing his eyes. "I know, I know..." He didn't know what to say, how could anything ever explain why he was acting like this? If he told him he was worried about him, then he would assume that he liked him, and he didn't really know what would come of that. _Nothing good_, he thought.

"C'mon, let's get some small things to light off;" Melvin murmured, getting to his feet, "How about some water booms?"

Ryou stared at him oddly. "Water booms?" He questioned.

"Well, I forgot what they're actually called," Melvin admitted, smiling a little, "So that's what I call them. They're really fun to throw into the water. They make this sonic boom thing that looks cool!"

Ryou laughed a little. "All right, let's see them in action."

Melvin grinned and led Ryou over to a little stream that ran through the beach, commenting casually behind his back, "By the way, you look really hot when you're mad."

If only Melvin could have seen the effect his comment had on the little white bunny; a shiver immediately went down his spine and he blushed, covering his face with his hands and cursing himself out. No one had ever called him... "_hot_" before. Cute, sure. Adorable? All the time, but not _hot. _Although considering Melvin's affinity for fire he supposed his word choice shouldn't have been that surprising... But it still made him more self-conscious about his looks, and he found himself running a hand through his hair like he always did around someone that he liked...

_Hand, stay out of my hair!-!_ he told himself, forcing the hand back.

Melvin smirked. _What's he doing? Such an expression, he looks so... conflicted._ "Anything... _wrong_, Ryou?"

"Gah!" Ryou exclaimed, looking up at him and blushing more. "N-no, nothing's wrong, I'm just... um... thinking..."

"Hmph. You look so..." He paused, searching for words. "You're blushing like crazy, but your eyes.. You look a little insane."

"Well maybe I'm just copying _you_," Ryou spat out before realizing what he said and covering his mouth. "I'm sorry, I guess I've acquired some of Bakura's sarcasm..."

"Well... Whatever." He brushed off the comment; it's not like it was new material. "You want some water booms or not?"

Ryou giggled a little. "That sounds so wrong..."

Melvin blushed. "I thought you'd only acquired some of Bakura's _sarcasm._ Where's the perversion coming from?"

"Your brother," Ryou said, shivering a little. "You wouldn't believe all of the things I've heard through the walls... And to think I used to like him -" Ryou clamped his mouth shut after he said that. Damn it! Why was he talking so much in front of Melvin? Was he nervous? He did tend to ramble when he was nervous...

_Man... Does this kid ever think before he opens his mouth?_ He holds out a hand to Ryou. "Well, come on then."

Ryou nodded before taking his hand, not trusting his voice anymore. He was surprised that he wasn't saying anything in regards to that last comment of his... he had never told anyone he liked Marik, not even Bakura. Although that was mainly because Bakura had told him that he liked Marik, but nonetheless... It was still a secret. One that was supposed to stay that way.

* * *

Yugi noticed Melvin and Ryou walking towards the pile of fireworks... together. _Huh... Wierd. I never saw those two ever getting along._ He shrugged, turning his eyes back to the water; the dark waves that rolled onto the shore were so calming. Yugi shivered. Under those beautiful flowing waves was a dense mass of blackness, that would drag anything that wandered into the shallows down into its depths... He shivered again.

"What is it, Yugi?" Yami's gentle voice broke the silence. Casting a sidelong glance, Yugi saw his eyes were full of concern. "Are you cold?" The shivering boy shook his head.

"I-I'm..." _This is so embarrassing... _"I'm afraid of water..." He turned away from Yami's sympathetic eyes, feeling his cheeks flush. Even the heat of his face couldn't stop the shivers from running down his back.

Yami hooked an arm around his shoulders. "We can go sit higher up on the dunes, if you want." He murmured, "I don't want you to be miserable while I have fun..." Yugi nodded, knowing that he wouldn't be able to speak. The only noise he thought would come from him was a faint squeak; _What a stupid sound... Why can't I just talk to him without feeling so... strange?_ It seemed so difficult to talk to Yami. He was sure that the only thing he'd ever heard from him was a stammering fool who was too shy to speak plainly to anyone. In all reality, Yugi was very outgoing; as long as Yami wasn't nearby. As soon as he could see the pale Egyptian, his tongue ceased to function.

Yami took Yugi's hand, helping him to his feet. Of course, Yugi made the mistake of looking at him. Immediately, his features were highlighted by the faint red he turned when he blushed. _Ugh... WHY?_ He squeezed his eyes closed, trying to calm down.

The two walked hand-in-hand up the shore, headed far from the water's edge; the farther they got from the waves, the more fine the sand was. When they finally settled on a spot, it felt like they were sitting on dust.

Yami was still holding his hand. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't stop himself from blushing. To make matters worse, the hold on his hand dropped and Yami's arm wrapped gently around his shoulder, making Yugi get even redder. _He's being so strange today... Or is it just me? Does he just seem different because he's paying attention to me?_ As his mind continued to reel, Yugi ran his fingers through the sand. It felt like earth that had been shaken loose and scattered in piles, just for people like him. The soft sand was for hydrophobes like him.

Yami sighed; Why was this so hard to do? Why couldn't he just sit with Yugi without his heart beating like a drum? _If this is what love feels like, I hate it..._ But of course, he knew better. He always felt so happy when he saw Yugi; he knew where he had to go if he was upset or angry. All he had to do was get a glance, and his heart soared. He had to tell him... _But how?_

"Hey, Yugi..." He looked down at him.

"What is it?" _His eyes are so beautiful..._

Yami smiled. "Do you remember the day we met?"

Yugi giggled. "How could I forget?"

"It wasn't that bad, was it?" Yami grins. "I didn't hurt you or anything... Just scattered your papers."

"You almost ripped my math textbook down the spine."

"... Erm, sorry about that..."

Yugi laughed, happy that he was holding up a normal conversation with him. "It's okay. And no, it wasn't _that_ bad I guess, but it was a little strange to look up and think you're looking into a mirror."

Yami chuckled a little. "I know what you mean. Who would've thought we'd both be in to the same look?"

"It _is_ a very popular style in the gaming world," Yugi said, thinking. "Come to think of it, that's how we knew what to talk about after you helped pick up all of my papers."

"Who would've known we'd have so much in common?"

"Anyone who looked at us?" Yugi asked with a grin. "We might as well be twins."

More laughing ensued before a comfortable silence washed over them, much like the waves that Yugi was afraid of. Finally, they could speak to each other like normal friends.

And Yami was about to ruin it.

"Yugi, I..." Just then, there was a scream from across the beach.

"MELVIN, NO!" Ryou hollered. In the distance, Melvin was busily duct taping fireworks to a lawn chair and Ryou was running towards him in a panic.

"MELVIN, YES!" Melvin screamed, lighting the fuse.

"OH MY GOD!" Ryou screamed as the chair started to lift up. As Marik, Bakura, Yami, and Yugi arrived at the scene, the younger British boy jumped onto the chair with Melvin without thinking, letting out a scream as he realized that now _he_ was being lifted up into the air by the fireworks.

Melvin was laughing hysterically, not noticing poor little Ryou, the heart of a pyromaniac taking over completely. It didn't get to ten feet before the two tumbled off of the death trap; Melvin face-planted into one of the sand dunes and Ryou landed on top of him, the fireworks on the chair going off and blowing the chair apart.

"Well, that was a bust," Melvin commented sourly, picking sand out of his hair. He smiled as he looked at Ryou, who still appeared to be in shock from everything. _Well, perhaps it wasn't all bad, since he is on top of me~_

He didn't fully grasp the sting of pain he felt in his cheek until he saw the fire in Ryou's eyes. "YOU BLOODY IDIOT!-!" he screamed at him. "Why in the _world_ would you think that was a good idea?-! Fireworks _explode! _Fireworks can _kill you!_ You bloody _WANKER_!"

"Ryou, calm -"

"Don't you bloody tell me to calm down!-!" Ryou screamed again, standing up to glare at him from above. "Do you realize the panic you've just sent me through?-! I thought you might actually die by the thing you love so much! You irresponsible, unbelievable, bloody _idiot!_"

This time it was Bakura who tried to calm him down. "Ryou, relax, everything's fine now -"

"Shut _up_ Bakura!" Ryou snapped at him before turning back to Melvin, who was now standing up and brushing the sand off of him. His face was blank, but it was obvious he was holding back an amused smile. "Is your life some sort of _game_ to you?-!" Ryou asked him, his arms akimbo as he glared heatedly up at him. "Why would you even -" he quickly shut up when he felt Melvin's lips against his. Too shocked to comprehend this concept at first, Ryou stayed there, but when his mind cleared up he took a step back and held a hand up to his mouth, blushing brightly. "Wh... what the bloody hell was that for?-!"

Melvin just grinned, tilting his head to the side slightly. "I told you you looked hot when you were mad."

Ryou just stood shell-shocked in the sand, staring blankly ahead. _What just happened?_ "You... you...!" Ryou let out an irritated sound before pushing him, noting with annoyance that it didn't even so much as _budge_ the powerfully built Egyptian. "Stop it!-!"

It took everything to stop himself from smiling._You've really done it now, Melvin. Good work._ "What's the matter, Ryou? It shouldn't be _that_ surprising. After all, I'm _insane._" He paused, flaunting a glare. "Why else would I come out to you in such a strange way? Why would I try to shoot myself up into the sky?"

Ryou took a deep breath, trying to tell himself _not_ to say whatever spiteful thing came to his mind... he lost that battle, however, as he said, "You're right, I shouldn't really care about someone _completely insane_, now should I?" he laughed cruelly before turning his back on him. "The only reason we even know each other is because our brothers are dating!" He bit his tongue before hastily screaming out one last sentence: "I wish I had never met you!-!"

Melvin's eyes widened; was that it, then? He bit his lip, not feeling anger or sadness. He just felt empty. It was like someone had pulled out the stopper that held his emotions in his heart. Now they were gone, and he had nothing left to feel. Ryou wished he had never met him... well, he supposed that was understandable, considering that was the way it went with almost every one of his friends. And why would someone _want _to meet a dangerous psychopath like him? It made perfect sense, but that didn't stop the pain and emptiness that came from Ryou's words.

Ryou turned around, and upon seeing the state Melvin was in felt instantly guilty. "Melvin," he tried saying, all anger wiped out of his voice, "I'm sorry, I didn't mean that, I... I just didn't want to think about you... dying..."

"I... I don't know why I did that..." Melvin sighed, letting his eyes close. "Sometimes I just do crazy shit without thinking." He folded his arms against his chest and looked down, biting his lip.

Ryou let out an amused sound. "If I haven't gotten that out of tonight, I'd think I had brain damage." He held a hand up to his head and sighed, yet he still smiled. "You've been driving me crazy all night."

"Thanks." A grin splits he sullen expression. "Most people can't stand me.I dunno how you've lasted this long."  
Ryou laughed. "Well, having Bakura for a brother helps -"

"Hey!" his older twin complained, "I resent that."

"Bakura, honey?" Marik cut in, smiling, "You know he's not wrong."

"_Honey?-!_" Melvin exclaimed, facepalming. "Marik, you are so embarrassing..."

Marik grins up at him. "Deal with it, onii-chan~"

Melvin rolled his eyes. "You're a weird little kid, no wonder Bakura likes you."

Bakura actually laughed at that comment before kissing Marik. "I actually liked being called honey, thank you very much." He smirked at Melvin before saying, "I'm sure you'll find you wouldn't mind being called honey either, by someone you liked."

"I doubt that, _honey_. I hate fluffy crap like that." He laughs at the angry look on Bakura's face. "What's wrong? Marik got your tongue?" He laughed at his own joke, not noticing Bakura stalking over to Ryou and whisper something in his ear. Nor noticing Ryou looking at his twin with surprise and raising an eyebrow at him. Nor Bakura nodding and pointing stiffly at him.

Ryou took a deep breath and, telling himself this was completely ridiculous and that he shouldn't be doing it, said in as sultry a voice as he could muster, "Melvin, honey, please stop laughing."

Frozen. That's what Melvin felt. He couldn't speak, couldn't move, couldn't think. Then, his face burned and he thawed out. "V-very funny, Ryou..."

Ryou actually blushed a little too, cursing himself for even saying that and cursing himself even more because Melvin's face made him think... did he...? No, no way... But that still didn't stop him from saying, "I, I wasn't j-joking, honey..." Why did he continue the joke, _why?-!_

"Uh..." More blush, more fire. "R-right..." _What's wrong with me? I mean come on...Ryou was just joking! Just helping Bakura make fun of me for my big mouth... no extra meaning behind it at all..._ _Or was there?_

Ryou laughed nervously before rubbing the back of his neck. "S-sorry, Bakura told me, uh..." he coughed before clapping his hands and turning to Yami and Yugi,

"Well! What wonderful fire display shall we light off next?"

"I'm more interested in the fire show in your and Melvin's faces," Bakura commented, laughing.

"Shut it, '_Kura_." He picked around the pile of fireworks, looking for something nice."What about these?" He asks, holding up one of Yami's bees.

"Oh!" Yami said, smiling and bypassing the awkwardness easily. The way things were progressing tonight didn't really surprise him anyways, though Yugi was still having a hard time grasping what exactly was happening. "Those are pretty cool, they fly around and buzz like a bee. Hence the name."

"Great, let's light 'em up," Ryou said eagerly, grabbing a lighter and starting it with surprising ease, Melvin noticed.

One by one, the bees flew into the pitch black sky. Their bright, shining colors looking perfect against the shimmering waves and delighted everyone, including Marik. Ryou was especially enjoying himself, lighting off bees like a child unwrapped candies. His face lit up whenever a different colored bee spun into the air, and he even laughed when they almost hit him or someone else.

Melvin giggled, poking him in the shoulder. "Careful Ryou, you're turning into me!"

Ryou smirked. "But being you is so much fun~!" he said with another laugh.

"Being _in_ him might be better," Marik muttered under his breath, sending his boyfriend into psychotic laughter.

"What's so funny, _kitty_?" Melvin smirked, "Marik offering something _special_ to you?"

"Nothing he hasn't offered before - OW!" Bakura exclaimed when Marik hit him _hard_ on the shoulder.

"You wouldn't like to hear it, onii-chan," Marik told him, smiling innocently.

Melvin scoffed. "I probably wouldn't." He turned back to the bees and yawned. "No offense, but these things are kind of boring... they dare call themselves bees?"

He smirked before walking over to his haul of fireworks and picking out a round firework with multiple holes sticking out of it. "_This_ is a bee!" He said before lighting it up and throwing it up into the air. The thing dropped to the sand before going off, spinning and whirring with sparks shooting out of it and flying off into the air in a much more abrasive fashion than that of Yami's bees.

Ryou's mouth gaped open as the bee left the ground. "Oh wow..." he mumbled, barely audible. "It's so frightening, but if you look hard enough, it's beautiful." He found his eyes wandering over to Melvin; he was like that, too. He always seemed so terrible and scary, but now, seeing his obsession as more of a passion, Ryou finally noticed his inner beauty.

Yami smirked and held up four bees with their fuses tied together. "Top this." He lit the knot and tossed the bees high into the air; before they'd even started to fall, they came to life in the sky and rocketed higher. They sparked and spun and danced in the starry sky, a beautiful ballet of extravagant light. But when it was over, Melvin scoffed.

"Bring it on, _Lover Boy_." He picked up a fistful of his mega-bees and lined them up on the shore. When he'd settled them all evenly apart on the sand, he whipped out his lighter and started the chain reaction of sparks. One by one, the fuses lit off of each other, and one by one, twelve color bombs whizzed into the moonlight. They exploded into life, a beautiful rainbow of silver and gold. Ryou grinned as the last one left the ground. _I guess those two will never get along_.

Before they knew it, bees burst into the sky like crazy. Yami and Melvin were each trying their hardest to outdo the other. Eventually, they ended up shooting the bees at one another, each trying to knock the others out of the sky, and even then it wasn't enough. It was incredible, until they ran out of bees. The two dropped into the sand, exhausted from their non-stop insanity.

"Hmm," Bakura said, looking down at the two tired boys laying on the sand. "This reminds me of something..." He smirked at his boyfriend, who pushed him a little.

"Well, those two tired themselves out," Marik said, looking down at them. "Maybe we should start heading home?"

"No!" Melvin and Ryou both exclaimed. They looked at each other before smiling, realizing that there were _some_ things they could agree on.

"Well, I definitely think we should keep Yami and Melvin separated," Yugi said, laying in the sand on his stomach and propping up his head with both hands.

"Perhaps it's best if we just stay in three groups?" Bakura suggested, giving Marik a very _suggestive_ look.

"I'll agree to that," Yami said, smiling at Yugi who smiled back.

"Sure, why not?" Melvin said, glancing at Ryou who bit his lip nervously before smiling and nodding in agreement. He supposed more time alone with Melvin wouldn't be _terrible_... It would probably be a lot of fun. "Let's get going!"

Melvin scooped up the remains of his fireworks; a few bottle rockets, some street flares, and a handful of assorted explosives that he'd grabbed at random from the shop. He stuffed them into the bag and grabbed Ryou's hand before dragging him over to an open spot, far away from the others.

"What do you want to light off first?" he asked, offering the bag to Ryou. The pale boy rummaged around for a minute before pulling out a bright red bottle rocket and grinning mischievously, waving it around like a prize.

"This one!" He declared, snatching Melvin's lighter and setting up the rocket in the sand. There was a quiet _flick_ as he ignited the lighter and lit the fuse, then he scurried back a few feet and sat next to Melvin in the sand.

Yami points up to the at the bright red flares shooting into the sky and smiles brightly down at Yugi. "Isn't it pretty?" Yugi nods as a heart blooms above his head.

"I love the shapes that they put in fireworks. Some of them are so beautiful!" Yugi giggled, watching another heart explode. "The colors are pretty, too." Yami was looking at Yugi instead of the show, finding it hard to watch the fireworks. The red glow that cast down on to Yugi's face was much more enchanting anyways, and the exploding hearts served as a reminder to what he had yet to tell the boy...

"Hey... Yugi. There's something I need to tell you." He blushed when the boy turned to face him, and he couldn't stop stammering as he tried to find the right words to say. "I... I like you..."

Yugi just stared at him for a second before blushing as well. "Oh... Really?" He gave a nervous laugh and looked away, playing with some of his bangs. "That's pretty funny... B-because... I l-like you, too."

Yami turned to him with wide eyes, almost not believing his ears. "R-really? But, I thought you and Ryou -"

"He was just helping me make you jealous," Yugi admitted with a weak laugh.

Yami just looked at him, and for a moment they both just stood there, blushing and breathless. Then suddenly, as if they had planned it, they both smiled. Yami took Yugi's hands and stared into those shining violet eyes, feeling his heart explode with joy, matching the previous hearts in the sky. _He's so beautiful… _he thought to himself, _and he feels the same!_His warm heart raced as he pulled the boy in close, his breath hitching when their lips were a centimeter apart. He froze for a moment, feeling the other's breath mix with his, but as a brilliant red heart burst over their heads they found themselves locked together. The kiss was sweet and gentle, dragging out until the sparkly heart had fallen and faded from the sky. They stared into each other's half-lidded eyes until another set of bright silvery stars exploded in the sky and they leaned in again, wrapping their arms around each other to get closer.

* * *

"Bakura, look," Marik said as he tugged on his boyfriend's sleeve and pointed to a very romantic picture of Yami and Yugi kissing while a heart exploded over them.

Bakura looked over and chuckled before leaning in and whispering into his ear, "Looks like one of your plans finally worked."

"Hey! My plans have worked before -"

"Oh yes, especially that one plan to crash a senior party."

"Well it _would _have worked if those girls would've minded their own business..."

Bakura chuckled and kissed his jawbone. "It's all right Marik, even if you're a failure I still love you."

"And even if you go bald one day I'll still love you," Marik teased, pulling on the British boy's white, fluffy locks. He looked back at Yami and Yugi and smiled to himself, happy for them. They had liked each other for so long that tonight must feel like one of magic for them, especially since all the fireworks resembled pixie dust, albeit faintly. He turned back to the boy he loved and smirked, leaning in close. "All that kissing over there makes me wonder if we can bring some of that over _here_."

Bakura chuckled. "My dear Marik," he said coyly, "haven't we done that enough tonight?"

"Well if you don't _want _to..." Marik said, grinning. He knew Bakura usually wanted it more than he did, which served as a _really_ great advantage sometimes.

"You already know the answer," Bakura said before kissing him. Marik just smiled into the kiss and tried to put his arms around the boy's neck, but he slapped them away before separating and giving a cocky grin. "Hands to ourselves, shall we?"

"I was wondering why you weren't touching me already," Marik joked before kissing him again, dutifully keeping his hands on the sand. Sometimes the British boy kept things chaste, and other times Marik had to almost rip that pretty hair out of his pale little head to get him to listen.

He enjoyed both moments though, really. But don't tell 'Kura that.

* * *

Ryou gave a wistful sigh when he saw Yami and Yugi together. _Why can't I have something like they do?_ He turned away, feeling annoyed that the only one left for him was Melvin. Well, if he didn't consider online dating an option... but frankly the concept freaked him out. _But… he's actually pretty nice… _ Ryou thought to himself, _once you stop being afraid you'll burn to death at his hands._

"So Melvin, why do you love fire so much?" Ryou asked with the brightest grin he could muster. "Is it just the destruction it can cause?"

Melvin's deadened expression took Ryou aback,and what came next nearly knocked him flat. "I wouldn't expect someone like you to understand," he said monotonously. "Yes, I do love fire, but not for its power. Rather, because of its _splendor_." Melvin paused, picking up his sky blue lighter out of the sand. In the dark of night, the little flame that appeared seemed to be hovering like a ghost, until it was brought up to the tanned face of a certain Egyptian boy who stared at it avidly. "Fire is an extravagant dance of red and orange hues; it burns on in its glorious, flickering ballet. However, someone who came in to see a fire would not see the beauty of the glow; instead, all they would see was a dangerous inferno that destroys everything in its path." The inconsistent light was just enough for Ryou to see the gloom that was painted across Melvin's face. "I can, in this way, relate to the fire. The people that see me will run, too. They see a psychotic killing machine that wouldn't think twice about obliterating them; but if they only took a moment to look under the blaze of my reputation, they'd see the kind, neglected heart underneath."

Melvin continued staring at the gentle, flickering flame while all Ryou could do was stare at _him_. What he was saying was so deep, it just made the British boy's heart feel like drowning with sadness; how many times must he have tried to talk to someone, only for them to run away? How many times must he have tried to make a friend and failed just because no one was willing to look past the rumors that surrounded him? The white-haired boy bit his lip as he realized that he was like that too... he had judged Melvin based off of the rumors, he had been scared of him, he hadn't been looking past the danger into the kindness...

How could he have been so insensitive? Hadn't he always told himself to get to know someone before judging them? He hadn't given Melvin that chance... he immediately made him out to be some horrible _monster_ when he didn't even know him.

And all this time... all Melvin wanted was for someone to see past the crazy to his true self, and no one - not even him - had given him that chance.  
"Melvin..." he found himself saying quietly, tears starting to form at his eyes.

The other boy let go of his beautiful flame before answering, "Yes?" without looking at him. After hearing silence for a few seconds though, he glanced at the boy out of the corner of his eyes. Once he saw the glistening tears running down Ryou's cheeks and how his face was scrunched into one of sorrow, he fully turned to him with widened eyes. "Why -?"

"Melvin," Ryou repeated again, his voice cracking as he reached forward and hugged the boy. He closed his eyes to try and stop his tears from soaking into this misunderstood boy's shirt, but it didn't work too well. "I'm sorry... I'm so, so sorry...!"

Melvin hugged the emotional boy back, surprised and kind of dazed. "Why are you sorry...?"

"Because... I couldn't get past the blaze..." Ryou said, choking up. "I couldn't... see _you _hidden away by the flames... I'm sorry." The way he looked right now... if anyone called him insane at that moment Ryou would call _them_ insane; he was ready to burst into tears.

Melvin held him in his arms, whispering sweetly as if to a child. "It's okay, Ryou, it's all right." He ran his fingers through the boy's snowy locks. "You can see, now, can't you? I promise, I will _never_ hurt you." Melvin leaned down and planted a kiss on his forehead.

"I don't think you'd ever hurt me..." Ryou mumbles into his broad chest, feeling tears well up in his eyes. "_I_ don't want to hurt _you_; I want you to be happy."

Melvin felt tears threaten his own eyes now; Ryou wanted him to be happy... He couldn't remember a time that someone wanted him to be _happy_. "... Thank you," Melvin muttered, hugging him tighter.

They stayed like that for a long time, both enjoying the other's embrace and holding back happy and sad tears. Eventually Ryou wiped his eyes and let go of Melvin, the other following suit, so he could lean back and stare at him, smiling weakly. "You really are so..." Ryou paused, trying to think of the perfect word to say. After a while, he couldn't think of just _one_, so he said the much clichéd: "Special..."

Melvin chuckled a bit. "Having trouble thinking right now?"

"You have no idea," Ryou said laughing a bit and staring at him. "... You're beautiful..." he muttered, smiling.

Melvin smiled back, finding it hard to look away from him and that dazzling smile. "Thanks... You're cute."

Ryou blushed slightly, a strand of hair falling in front of his eyes as he looked down, increasing his cuteness. "Haven't heard _that_ one before..."

Melvin laughed before reaching a hand up to move that white strand back behind his ears, moving just a little closer. All the while they maintained eye contact, and instead of moving his hand back he caressed his fingers down the side of Ryou's face until he reached his colored cheeks, smirking when the pale boy blushed even more from the touch. "You know, when your cheeks heat up... it's almost like they're on fire."

Ryou giggled a bit. "Which kind?"

Melvin grinned mischievously, leaning in close to whisper, "I don't know, you're pretty dangerous... considering how you've completely covered my eyes with your blaze."

Ryou's eyes widened as his entire face turned red and his mouth twitched into a smile. He reached a hand up and grabbed the collar of Melvin's shirt before saying, "Well, how about I cover more of your face...?"

Melvin actually blushed from that statement and said kind of nervously, "Wow... that's pretty forward..."

Ryou smiled sexily and pulled the feisty boy in closer as he closed his eyes halfway, breathing out seductively, "Kiss me, honey."

Melvin didn't need a second invitation; he took Ryou's brilliantly red face in his hands and kissed him, almost missing the target in his haste. As soon their lips finally touched, his breath caught in his throat. It was so soft; it felt like he had touched satin to his lips. How the heck did he get them like that?

Ryou, on the other hand, was feeling very... frisky... at the moment; he felt this irresistible need to get as close to the boy as possible, so he wrapped his arms around his neck and deepened the kiss. Melvin felt himself falling backwards, and before he knew it he was lying in the sand and Ryou was on top of him. The pale little boy didn't seem to care one bit; he licked the bottom of Melvin's lip and let out a little whimpering sound.

This is when Melvin started to get scared. Just a tad.

"Ryou, maybe we should -" he couldn't talk as Ryou attacked his lips again, so he pushed him away a little bit and tried again: "Ryou, darling, I think -" again, he was interrupted by Ryou's lips... what had gotten into his little fire angel?-! "Ryou, Bakura's right behind us!"

This is what got the pale boy's attention. He blushed profusely and put almost five feet between them as he turned around, his mouth open in an explanation. After looking around for a bit though, he realized that Bakura was nowhere in sight and turned back to Melvin. "Wha...? He's not -" he blushed more as he realized _why_ Melvin would tell such a lie. He covered his mouth with both of his hands as he burrowed holes into the sand with his eyes. "O-Oh, I'm s-sorry!-!"

Melvin just chuckled a bit. "I didn't know you had that in you."

Ryou turned away from him, certain that he _was_ going to burst into flames if he stayed there any longer. "I-I didn't know ei-either..." He didn't know what got over him; he supposed it was thanks to him being a teenager... hormones, and all that, yes... but it still made him feel ashamed of himself for acting like _that_. "S-sorry..." he mumbled again, closing his eyes tightly.

"You don't have to apologize," Melvin said, smiling. "Just... I need to be more prepared next time, now that I know how _much_ you like to kiss~"

"I don't want to lose my virginity yet..." Ryou mumbled, looking at Melvin and frowning. "I, I'm just a teenager, and, and... I'm not, I don't want..."

Melvin giggled; even when he stammered and stumbled over his words, he still managed to be adorable. "Ryou, it's alright, I understand... It's nothing to be embarrassed about." He smirked, walking over to the boy and touching his shoulder. "Honestly, if I hadn't thought about the things Marik would say to me, I wouldn't have stopped, either."

Ryou was silent for a minute before he smiled slightly. "You were thinking of your brother during our kiss?" He put a finger to Melvin's lips when he opened them with colored cheeks. "I'll have to fix that~"

* * *

Marik was leaning his head on Bakura's shoulder as they stared up at the stars, fingers intertwined. The fireworks had died away, leaving the beautiful _natural_ balls of light to be their guide, and the waves to wash them in a calming water noise. "Tonight was perfect, don't you agree?" Marik asked, looking up at his boyfriend and smiling.

Bakura smiled back at him. "Definitely. I wonder how the others are doing? I haven't really heard anything from them for awhile."

Marik sat up and stretched before yawning. "Maybe we should go round 'em up and go home, it's pretty late and it seems like they ran out of fireworks."

"Or they're too busy with each other to light off anymore," Bakura joked.

"Yeah," Marik said, laughing as he held a hand out to Bakura. The British boy gladly took it, then they looked around for their friends. They found one pair fairly easily; Yami was laying down in the sand with Yugi resting his head on his chest, and though they couldn't see their faces it wasn't too hard to guess that they were probably smiling. "Yo! Yugi!" Marik called, watching with silent laughter as Yugi stiffened and raised his head.

"Y-yes?" he called back. It was obvious from his tone that he didn't really want to move right now.

"I think it's time we head back, but you two could have a sleepover or something."

"N-NO!" Yugi screeched, standing up now.

Yami sat up lazily and stretched before calling to Marik, "Moment-ruiner! I thought you'd understand since you have a boyfriend, for Pete's sake!"

Both Marik and Bakura laughed before the latter said, "Sorry! But we really should be heading back. Have you seen my brother?"

"And mine?" Marik added.

"No," Yugi said, looking around. "I haven't seen them for a long time."

Marik and Bakura exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing - _Are they...?_ "C'mon, let's find them," Bakura told them, turning to find them once he saw the other two nod in agreement.

They all headed their separate ways, taking different areas of the beach. Bakura headed to where he saw them last, and almost froze when he heard... very _familiar_ sounds... He walked cautiously to where they were coming from, a blush coming to his face as he saw _his _brother, and _Marik's _brother, kissing very, uh... provocatively.

They were laying on the sand... with Ryou on top... pale arms wrapped around tanned neck... tanned arms wrapped around pale waist... multiple sounds coming from both... mouths locked together like they were glued that way... writhing around...

"A-_hem_," Bakura coughed loudly, effectively earning both of the boy's attentions.

Ryou scrambled off of Melvin with the reddest face Bakura had _ever _seen on him while the boy stumbled, "B-Bakura! This, this isn't what it... I-I mean, it _is_, but, but... I..."

Bakura held up a hand to stop his brother's rambling, looking at Melvin, who was blushing from embarrassment but also had a very smug smirk on his face. "Save it," Bakura said with a smirk, "I _know_ what you're going through, Ryou, it's completely natural."

Ryou blushed more before he brought his knees up to his torso and hid his face in them, not saying anything. Melvin, on the other hand, laughed and said, "Your brother's one _hell_ of a kisser, 'Kura, did you give him lessons?"

"Melvin!" Ryou said indignantly, lifting his head to glare at him.

"No, I have not been giving him "lessons,"" Bakura answered with an eye roll. He turned to the others and yelled, "Hey! They're over here!"

"What, are we going now?" Melvin asked, a little confused.

Bakura chuckled. "I know you'd rather stay here and have more fun with your..." he glanced at Ryou, who blushed and muttered, "boyfriend..." to help Bakura's sentence along. The older British twin laughed and continued, "_boyfriend_, but some sleep will do us all some good."

"Hey guys!" Marik called, running up to them and smiling. "What were you -" he stopped his sentence when he saw the state both of them were in. He smirked before nudging Bakura. "Well, looks like my plan worked!"

"Better than you realize..." Bakura mumbled.

"Wait," Melvin said, standing up and looking at his brother. "You planned _this_ to happen?-!" he exclaimed, gesturing to Ryou who covered his face with his hands and groaned. He was feeling very, _very_ embarrassed about the fact that they got caught, but why didn't Melvin care?-! … Oh, right, 'cause everyone would expect "this" from _him_, just not from _Ryou_... This was so unfair!

"That's right, onii-chan," Marik said, grinning. "Happy early birthday?"

Melvin grinned back before walking over to Ryou and picking him up bridal style, much to the other's dismay. "Best, present, _ever~_" he said before kissing his "present" again.

Yami and Yugi came up at this moment, and once they saw Melvin and Ryou kissing Yami cheered for them; "Way to go, Melvin!"

"Congratulations, Ryou," Yugi said, smiling. He could remember the day Ryou had been complaining that everyone had _someone_ except for him, so he was genuinely happy for his friend.

"Thanks..." Ryou mumbled, burying his face in Melvin's chest. "Can we go home now? _Please?-!_" he almost begged.

"Oh, Ryou, there's nothing to be _embarrassed_ about~" Bakura tormented, laughing when his twin sent him a glare.

"You're never going to let me hear the end of this, are you?" he asked through clenched teeth.

"Probably not."

"Why?" Marik asked, smile widening. "How did you find them?-!"

"_Don't you dare answer that question!_" Ryou screamed, jumping down from Melvin's arms.

"My imagination is already taking flight," Marik said with a laugh. He grabbed Bakura's hand and started leading the way home. "Come on everyone, this is the end!"

* * *

_I hope you enjoyed this wonderful fic of ours~! _

**I enjoyed it o - o**

_Well I know _you _did; you kept fangirl squealing every time we wrote something fluffy XD_

**DO NOT SPEAK OF IT! I hate it when that noise comes from my mouth /**

_XDD Haha, yeah... you bring out the pervert in me, you realize that right?_

**That doesn't sound WRONG at all,** **_America_...**

… _Shut up, _Iggy_. Anyways! This is only the first chapter, we hope to write more soon. _

_Please review :3 _


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